Video: Israeli forces chase, beat student in northern West Bank

Nov. 12, 2015 6:46 P.M. (Updated: Nov. 12, 2015 8:34 P.M.)

A file photo of clashes in Hebron on October 4, 2015. (AFP/Hazem Bader/File)

TULKAREM (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces chased a Palestinian protester through a field in an army jeep on Thursday before assaulting him during clashes that erupted near the Palestine Technical University in the northern occupied West Bank district of Tulkarem.

Video footage of the incident shows an Israeli soldier exiting the jeep after chasing the young man and hitting him, causing him to fall over.

Once the student was on the ground, more soldiers exited the jeep and immediately circled the young man and began kicking and hitting him all over his body.

An Israeli army spokesperson said Israeli forces "arrested a Palestinian during a violent riot of hundreds that took place adjacent to the university in Tulkarem."

The spokesperson said during the clashes, "rioters rolled burning tires and hurled rocks and firebombs at the forces, so they responded with riot dispersal methods."

The spokesperson did not comment on the beating of the young man.

Students of the Palestine Technical University have organized frequent marches throughout October and into November in protest against Israeli violations and raids on the university's campus. When Israeli forces show up to suppress the marches, clashes break out.

According to campus administrators, Israeli forces have been positioned in a camp they set up inside the university's campus where forces often use the position to fire bullets and tear-gas at protesting students.

On Monday, Israeli forces shot and injured at least five students with live bullets during clashes near the university, while 13 other students were injured with rubber-coated steel bullets and 50 were treated for severe tear-gas inhalation.

The administration of the university evacuated the campus, sending students home early, in fear for its students’ safety.